The Inconvenience of a White Christmas
by Rapture-Taylore
Summary: Team 7 Short Oneshot. Mainly based around Sakura and Sasuke. Sakura meets Sasuke in town after a snow fall but needs a little help inviting him to join her and Naruto for Christmas. Set sometime before Sasuke leaves Konoha.


The Inconvenience of a White Christmas

Sakura trod carefully through the snow. Well it wasn't really snow anymore she mused. A week of sudden snow fall had started to melt and then refrozen over night as the temperature suddenly dropped again. It had left behind sheets of ice across Konoha, covering the paths and fields, and making Sakura's supposedly short trip into town last for ages.

Sakura walked slowly across the ice holding her bag of last minute shopping that her mother had asked her to get awkwardly as she tried to look at the refrozen snow directly in front of her feet to watch where she was going. She lost her footing suddenly and slid on the ice and as Sakura tried to regain her footing someone grabbed the sleeve of her coat to keep her steady.

Sakura shifted her shopping to balance herself some more and looked up at the person who had such a firm grip on her arm.

"Sasuke," She squeaked, suddenly overcome with embarrassment that he was the one who found her almost falling over when, for a shinobi like herself, it should have been only too easy to walk on the snow.

"You know you could always use chakra," Sasuke said frowning at her. Sakura flushed slightly as he had so easily figured out why she had been walking so slowly.

"That always seems like cheating to me," She said and although Sasuke's expression didn't change she fancied that he was curious about what she was saying. "You know if everyone else is trying to go about without falling over why should we have the benefit of doing everything with such ease."

Sasuke looked down at the ice beneath them and didn't say anything. Sakura didn't mind as she hadn't really expected one from him anyway. Instead she was surprised when the bag was suddenly lifted from her hands and Sasuke looked back at her.

"I'll walk you home," he said simply, and once again Sakura liked to think she could read the meaning behind his unspoken words. She'd like to think that he did it because he cared for her, a lot, maybe even the way she cared for him. But, Sakura reasoned, it was more likely that he didn't want to have to deal with a team mate who got injured from her own foolishness.

"Thanks," She said instead and carefully turned to lead the way back to her road listening to the soft sounds of Sasuke's footsteps beside her.

She frowned slightly as she heard a slight difference in his footsteps as his strides became less confident as he walked and he moved at the same hesitant pace as Sakura was. She smiled slightly as she realised he had stopped the flow of chakra from his feet in order to walk along side her like everyone else. As silly as it sounded it was the little things about Sasuke that she liked the most.

"It's funny how everyone hopes for a white Christmas year after year," Sakura said and she smiled slightly as she was greeted by a familiar silence but she continued to talk anyway. "If the snow stays tonight then I suppose we'd finally have snow at Christmas tomorrow. But the thing is no one ever thinks about how inconvenient the whole thing is especially when you have to go out to get some last minute shopping, its cold and damp and if it wasn't for you then I would have fallen over and made an idiot of myself back then."

Sakura smile gratefully at Sasuke, "although I'm sure snow at Christmas would look ever so lovely it just seems like a bother to me." Sasuke made a small noise of agreement and Sakura smiled again, glad that he seemed to be actually paying attention to her for once.

As they arrived at the end of her road Sakura reached out to take the bags off Sasuke and they both hesitated between saying their goodbyes or staying together as Sasuke walked Sakura up to her house.

"Um," Sakura said, "Thanks Sasuke, really, you didn't need to do that." Sasuke shrugged slightly and Sakura blew out the breath she had been holding watching as it formed a cloud in front of her face.

"I'll see you later," Sasuke said suddenly and turned to walk carefully away from her. Sakura said a quiet goodbye as she hesitated at the end of the road.

Not for the first time Sakura wondered what Sasuke did for his Christmases. But just like the Christmas before the words were stuck and as she watched his retreating figure with a heavy heart. She wondered what was so hard about inviting him to join her for her family Christmas. Naruto, she had asked a long time ago it seemed and he was now automatically included in whatever plans her family had made that year and for any other family occasion. He had met her parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and got on with all of them.

She heard a soft crunch as Naruto jumped down beside her and almost slipped on the slush beneath them.

"Jeez, you still can't invite him Sakura?" He asked and then grinned at her, "how come you so easily asked me?" Sakura shrugged slightly as she watched Sasuke. Naruto looked thoughtful.

"Well it's no problem if you just wanted to have the offer there for him." He said and Sakura turned to ask him what he meant when Naruto breathed in and cupped his hands around his mouth.

"Naruto-" Sakura started but was cut off as the boy suddenly shouted.

"Hey Sasuke!" He bellowed and Sakura flinched at the volume, but he succeeded in getting the other's attention as Sasuke turned and waited to see what he would say next. "Sakura wants to know if you'll come join us for Christmas." He continued and Sakura shifted uncomfortable next to Naruto as Sasuke seemed to scrutinise them both.

"It's at Sakura's house, her whole family will be there, her mum makes the best food and there's always lots of it," Naruto shouted again, "Her uncle's a bit scary but that's all you need to worry about." Sakura gently hit Naruto on the side of his head.

"Just leave it," She said sharply and then added quietly, "at least you asked."

Naruto scowled at Sasuke who had now turned away from them slightly and seemed to be looking at something in the distance.

Sasuke frowned slightly as he looked towards his old home, thinking back to old Christmases that he had spent surrounded by family. He glanced back as Sakura and Naruto who looked like he was trying to pout and Sakura looked a bit put out by his prolonged silence.

"Alright," Sasuke said clearly and he could immediately see Sakura's expression brighten as Naruto looked at him with disbelief.

"Really?" He shouted.

"I'll see you both tomorrow," Sasuke said as he turned away leaving his stunned teammates behind him. It was strange to think that they had become a new family to him. Well they almost had anyway.

"Did you hear that Sakura?" Naruto said excitedly "It'll be the three of us celebrating a holiday together for once." Sakura smiled at his enthusiasm as she knew how glad he would be to have the team together at times like this, as his own family.

"Yeah," She said softly. Sakura thought about the mark Orochimaru left on Sasuke's neck and the warning he'd given her. Sasuke would one day seek power. And although she knew that she and Naruto could never replace what he'd lost she had to hope that just maybe they'd be enough for him to stay.


End file.
